Pages

PIA News Service - Saturday, April 21, 2012

BUTUAN CITY, April 21 (PIA) -- The Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP) will be hosting this year’s biggest gathering of people’s organizations (PO) in Mindanao.

The MRDP PO Congress will be held on May 11 in Davao City, and coincides with the annual farmers’ month celebration. Around one thousand PO program beneficiaries are expected to attend.

MRDP is a poverty-alleviation initiative of the Department of Agriculture (DA) jointly funded by the World Bank, national government, and local government units covering Mindanao’s 26 provinces and 225 municipalities. It seeks to further improve rural incomes and achieve food security through agri-fishery infrastructure, livelihood enterprise, and biodiversity conservation projects.

Through the Community Fund for Agricultural Development (CFAD), MRDP had been providing livelihood project such as food production, aqua culture, food processing and small-scale rural infrastructure.

MRDP program director Lealyn Ramos said providing POs with livelihood projects complements the Aquino’s administration goal of promoting inclusive growth where fruits of developments will benefit a broader segment of the society especially the poor.

“MRDP livelihood projects follows a community-demand driven approach (CDD) where PO-beneficiaries are guided to choose projects that addresses their felt needs and at the same time provide them sustainable income,” she said.

Ramos said several PO have already shown success in their livelihood projects.

Rice farmers in Kumalarang, Zamboang del Sur and Bansalan, Davao del Sur have liberated themselves from trader-lenders after they were provide modest funding from the Program.

While some cassava farmers in Kapalong, Davao del Norte have expanded their production which led some of the PO members to buy parcels of land to expand their farm lots and even buy “multicab” vehicle.

“The PO Congress will highlight sharing and learning experiences that strengthens community institutions as a vehicle to spur economic activities at the barangay level and sharing common visions for Mindanao,” MRDP Director Lealyn Ramos said. (RER/DAMRDP)